Daily viva help for PhDs
You can ask for a break at any point in the viva. Bathroom breaks, medical-related breaks or for any other reason if you need one.
As well as attending to the need at the time, take sixty seconds in the break:
And remember: you’re getting closer to being done. You’re almost there. Not long now.
Very simple viva directions!
There’s a process and prep, a thesis and a candidate, two examiners with questions and comments and expectations and –
– really you just need to sit down and talk.
Have a conversation. A discussion. A chat.
Three prepared people, one thesis, one PhD journey and a few hours for everyone to do what they need to do.
Be ready to sit down and talk. Prepare, rehearse, be ready.
You don’t need to be afraid of finding typos. For the most part when someone finds a typo, at worst, it will distract them. A very, very, very minor frustration. For an examiner it is something to record in some way, so that they can ask the candidate to make appropriate changes later.
If you find a typo you can do the same.
Typos don’t need to be feared, they need to be found! When you encounter them, note them down, what is needed in the future to make them right and move on.
There’s far more important work to do and far more important things to talk about in the viva.
The most common viva situation in the UK includes two examiners, one internal and one external. Some universities have independent chairs to steer and confirm the process, and in most cases a supervisor is allowed to attend with the candidate’s approval, but there are nearly always only two examiners.
Nearly always.
There are good reasons for exceptions. It could be that the research requires people with different research backgrounds and interests. A third examiner might be needed so that certain knowledge can be brought into the viva. Or perhaps the candidate is also a staff member at their PhD institution and a second external is required to ensure that the viva is seen as fair.
More examiners could mean more questions in the viva; more people talking could mean the viva has more hours than most.
But it doesn’t mean significantly more work in preparation. An extra person won’t take long to look into: a few more papers to consider, a little more thought to consider what they might be interested in.
A 50% increase in examiners doesn’t lead to a 50% increase in prep, questions, viva time or corrections!
Realising that you’ve made a mistake doesn’t feel good. Spotting a typo, a mis-quote, an error or a problem in your thesis could send you into a panic. Or being told by your examiners that they have a question and finding that it is related to something you haven’t noticed could make you feel dreadful.
As with so many situations in the viva, all of the feelings could be much bigger than the situation they are in response to. If you’re wrong ask yourself why you are wrong. Ask yourself how you can make things right. Ask yourself what you need to do in the moment, in the viva.
Work past the feelings, engage with the situation and do something.
Or a standard viva pause.
Just long enough to check you’ve understood a question, begin to consider what it means and get some thoughts in order for what you might say.
Three to five seconds is a pause – but if you need longer, take longer. There’s no rush in the viva. If you need to think more or consult in your thesis then tell your examiners.
Pause when you need to in the viva. Take your time to engage as well as you can.
Lots of questions have answers.
Answers are things that are known: factually accurate, true or perhaps established as a logical argument with sufficient supporting reasons and information.
If you were asked a question and needed to find an answer in the viva there are lots of things you could do or try:
Lots of questions have answers and if you are trying to find an answer in the viva there is a lot you could do to find it.
But not every question has an answer.
Some questions seek opinions. Some are hypothetical and explore a scenario – or how someone thinks about it. Some questions have an answer – and you might not know it. Some questions don’t have answers, but they are worth exploring all the same.
If a question has an answer you might be able to find it. If a question doesn’t then you can still engage with it.
Not every question has an answer, but every question asked at the viva is something you can engage with and respond to. If there’s an answer there then there’s plenty you can do to find it – and if there isn’t you still have an opportunity to demonstrate your work, your ability and your knowledge.
You are the only person in your viva who can speak for you and your work. The questions and comments from your examiners, the discussion that follows, all of it is is centred on getting you to engage and talk. You, and you alone, can respond.
Before the viva, however, you are not alone – there are many people who can offer you support.
You get to the viva, alone, but supported. You’re the only one in a position to respond, buoyed by the support and help of many others. You, and you alone, can – and will – rise to this challenge.
…think in the viva.
…reflect on what you’re about to say to your examiners.
…decide how you will get ready when you’ve submitted your thesis.
…compose a response to a difficult question in practice or in your viva.
…realise that there is nothing wrong with pausing, and that a pause is necessary at many points for many reasons in the journey from submission to the viva – and from the start to the end of your discussion with your examiners.
…prepare well for the viva and engage well in the viva.
It’s not wrong to want your viva to be done. That’s a natural response to the challenge and the situation.
But don’t try to rush your viva so it’s over as soon as possible. Don’t try to get every thought out as quickly as you can.
Likewise viva prep takes time. Give yourself a break before you begin. Take your time to do it well and take your time to think.
Perhaps if you feel impatient for your prep to be done or your viva to be over, stop and – if you can – think for a moment about what the real issue is. What’s driving how you feel? And what can you do about it?